CTNS News

Center for Theology and Natural Science News

The conference papers of CTNS's SATURN (Scientific and Theological Understandings of Randomness in Nature) Program are now available from Templeton Press as God's Providence and Randomness in Nature: Scientific and Theological Perspectives, Robert John Russell and Joshua M. Moritz, eds. (2019). The conference was held in October 11, 2014 and funded by a grant from Calvin College through their Randomness and Divine Providence Program. Topics include the problem of evil, miracles, creation of the universe, free will, evolution and the multiverse.

The Russell Family Research Fellow in Religion and Science for 2019 is Dr. Joshua M. Moritz (GTU, 2011) on The Vital Role of Science in Youth Ministry. National survey data from the past 20 years has shown that the perceived clash between faith and science has been a major factor influencing the decisions of youth to abandon their Christian faith in college. The interaction of science and theology should thus be a top priority for youth education. An interactionist approach that treats both theology/scripture and science as true sources of authority is needed.

In its 17th year, Theology and Science continues to offer thoughtful, cutting-edge research and reflection on a wide variety of topics in the field of science and religion. This year's issues include theme articles on "Should We Send Messages to Extraterrestrials" and "Longevity Research". Ted Peters' Playing God with Frankenstein was the most read article in 2018, celebrating the 200th anniversary of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein,and relating it to current ethical questions in the field of bioethics, such as human genome editing and what Peters calls the "transhumanist impulse." To subscribe (and become a CTNS member), please visit https://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/rtas20.

Over the past two years Braden Molhoek, in addition to working at CTNS, has presented work on the intersection of science and religion in a variety of settings. He presented papers at two meetings of the Saskatchewan Center for Science and Religion on transhumanism, artificial intelligence (AI), and the implications on Christianity of life elsewhere in the universe. Braden also explored elements of his dissertation involving original sin, evolution, and friendship at a science and religion conference in Oxford. The Notre Dame Center for Theology, Science, and Human Flourishing held a grant capstone conference in London about science and virtue where Braden spoke on issues of injustice in academic publishing and graduate education. Last summer he was asked to be a panelist on theological anthropology at the first meeting of the Christian Transhumanist Association. In March of 2019 Braden will be taking part in an Army Ethics Symposium that includes a discussion of transhumanism and AI on large scale combat operations.

An institution of higher learning unlike any other, the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley brings together scholars of the world’s diverse religions and wisdom traditions to advance new knowledge, share inspiration, and collaborate on solutions.